South Carolina Police Chief Harvests Giant Gator
Lake Marion, SC –-(AmmoLand.com)- On the last day of South Carolina’s Public Alligator Harvest Program a thirteen foot two inch alligator was harvested from Lake Marion in Calhoun County near Stump Hole Landing.
The alligator weighed in at one thousand sixty pounds and measuring 13 feet, 2 inches. It took approximately two and a half hours to get the gator secured and ready for dispatch. Once secured the harvest tag holder dispatched the gator utilizing a Glock .357 Sig Handgun.rp
This was a total group effort and each participant played a vital role in the alligator harvest. The participants were a diverse and interesting group and are listed as follows.
- Terry Chavis, Windstream Service Tech.
- Wendy Heckle, Fire Chief, St. Matthews Fire Dept.
- Tyler Garrett, Student, First Assembly Christian School
- Gregg Antley, Special Agent, SC Law Enforcement Div.
- Donnie Porth, Corner, Calhoun County
- Lin Shirer, Asst. Chief, Elloree Police Dept.
- Preston Avinger, Chief, Elloree Police Dept. (Tag Holder)
All harvest reports are not complete, but the alligator is currently believed to be the largest ( With combination of length and weight) killed this season.
For four hours, the group searched areas in and around Stump Hole Landing hoping to see signs of gator activity.
Lin Shirer said that at around 4 a.m., the group was getting ready to head home “when Wendy and Terry shined some eyes in a cove.”
The crew approached the cove and used a rod-and-reel to launch a snatch hook into the gator. The men said they initially thought the alligator was about a 7-footer. The gator crept along the lake bottom “for hours” after Antley struck him with a harpoon, Shirer said.
Nearly two hours had passed when the gator surfaced for a moment – just long enough for Shirer to get a glimpse of its immense head. He quickly determined the critter was much larger than they originally believed.
By 6 a.m., the men had secured the gator with three harpoons and a snatch hook. Avinger said once the alligator was secured, it was shot it in the head with a Glock .357 Sig handgun.
Next, the crew attached the gator by its head to their boat and towed him to Stump Hole Landing, a process that took more than two hours, Shirer said.P
